quarta-feira, 21 de dezembro de 2011

Today,
the Recording Academy named Glen Campbell, the Allman Brothers Band,
George Jones, Diana Ross, Gil Scott-Heron, the Memphis Horns and Antonio
Carlos Jobim as recipients of this year’s Lifetime Achievement Awards.
Steve Jobs, Dave Bartholomew and Rudy Van Gelder were also chosen to
receive Trustee Awards.
The recipients will be honored at an invitation-only ceremony Feb.11,
and the honorees will be acknowledged the following day during the
telecast of the 54th annual Grammy Awards at Staples Center.
"This year's honorees offer a variety of brilliance, contributions
and lasting impressions on our culture," Neil Portnow, president and
chief executive of the Recording Academy, said in a statement released
Wednesday. "It is an honor to recognize such a diverse group of
individuals whose talents and achievements have had an indelible impact
on our industry."
The Recording Academy describes the Lifetime Achievement Award as
honoring those “performers who have made contributions of outstanding
artistic significance to the field of recording.” The Trustees Award
“recognizes contributions in areas other than performance.” Both awards
are determined by vote of the Recording Academy's national board of
trustees.
Celemony and Roger Nichols were also named as Technical Grammy Award
honorees for their outstanding contributions to the recording field.
Technical Grammy Award recipients are voted in by the academy's
producers and engineers wing advisory council and chapter committees as
well as the academy's trustees.

Lausanne, 21 December 2011 - The Musée de l’Elysée has decided to suspend the
organisation of the Lacoste Elysée Prize 2011. Introduced in 2010 to sustain young
photographers, the prize is worth 25 000 euros.
In the context of the 2011 edition of the prize, eight nominees were selected to take part
in the contest. They were asked to produce three photographs on the theme la joie de
vivre. With the help of a individual grant of 4 000 euros, each nominee had carte blanche
to interpret the theme in which ever way they favoured, in a direct or indirect manner,
with authenticity or irony, based upon their existing or as an entirely new creation. An
expert jury should have met at the end of January 2012 to select the winner of the
Lacoste Elysée Prize 2011.
The Musée de l’Elysée has based its decision on the private partner’s wish to exclude
Larissa Sansour, one of the prize nominees. We reaffirm our support to Larissa Sansour
for the artistic quality of her work and her dedication. The Musée de l’Elysée has already
proposed to her to present at the museum the series of photographs “Nation Estate”,
which she submitted in the framework of the contest.
For 25 years, the Musée de l’Elysée has defended with strength artists, their work,
freedom of the arts and of speech. With the decision it has taken today, the Musée de
l’Elysée repeats its commitment to its fundamental values.

As Americans ready for a legislation that will impose a
government-sanctioned firewall over the Internet, the elite
computer-literate hacktivists attacking the law are finding ways to
circumvent the passing of SOPA.
If the House and Senate have their way, the Stop Online Privacy Act,
or SOPA, will leave Capitol Hill soon and seemingly cloak the Internet
with Congress-created blockades that will shun every user of the World
Wide Web from a whole slew of content, including music, videos and, in a
nutshell, knowledge. Under the legislation, violation will yield
massive fines and imprisonment — all for such action as uploading videos
to YouTube. While the legislation is being delivered as a way to deal
with copyright infringement and piracy on the Web, the law itself will
severely cut down the free-flow of information online and would make
something as simple as singing karaoke a crime if the footage ever finds
an audience on the Web.“SOPA is a joke,” an activist affiliated with the online collective Anonymous says to RT under condition of anonymity. “It’s Internet censorship under the guise of anti piracy. Everyone knows this.”
That
guise is being guided by the government, however, which could make it
come to life in the very near future. Only one week ago Congress
approved the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012, a
legislation that allows for the indefinite detention and torture of
American citizens. With being shackled at Gitmo a real-life threat now,
activists against SOPA realize that the censorship shouldn’t be
something that they’d put pass Capitol Hill. In preparation, adds the
source aligned to the online collective Anonymous, “We are preparing for censorship much like China.”
As
the realities of SOPA passing becomes an Orwellian-threat almost coming
to life, computer users are quickly taking to the Web to spread
information to other surfers on how to sneak pass the firewall that
could cause the censoring of the Internet. “Most of us have been stockpiling IP addresses,”
adds the source. Under SOPA, the government is believed to go after the
Web by means of attacking the Internet’s domain naming system, or DNS.
That’s the process that translates the actual, alphabetical domain name
from a series of numerical characters, the Internet protocol (IP)
address.
In order to get around such filtering, activists have
already begun circulating lists online that chronicle the IP-addresses
of popular websites that could be censored on SOPA so that users will be
able to keep a roster handy of the digits that can be typed to dig up
sites even as at risk as Google.com (which you could alternatively
navigate to with the numbers 74.125.225.86 pasted into your browser).
“SOPA emergency lists” have been spread around the Web in recent days
via Twitter and viral messaging, allowing users to save a list of sites
as innocent as Digg.com or The Onion, which are just as prone to having
the plugged pulled on them than anyone else.
Erik Martin, the general manager of the popular website Reddit, wrote last week that, “If SOPA passes in anything like its current form, it would almost certainly mean the end of Reddit.”“SOPA would make running Reddit near impossible,” added Martin. “And
we have access to great lawyers through our parent company. I can't
imagine how smaller sites without those kind of resources could even
attempt a go at it if SOPA passes.”
For the less
computer-savvy, developer T Rizk has created an add-on for the popular
Web browser FireFox which instantly translates domain names to their IP
equivalent. His program, DeSopa, is available for free and is just one
of the latest alternatives birthed through the chilling legislation.“I
feel that the general public is not aware of the gravity of SOPA and
Congress seems like they are about to cater to the special interests
involved, to the detriment of Internet, for which I and many others live
and breathe,” T Rizk explains to TorrentFreak.“It could
be that a few members of Congress are just not tech savvy and don’t
understand that it is technically not going to work, at all. So here’s
some proof that I hope will help them err on the side of reason and vote
SOPA down.”
Other material circulating online includes a
tutorial sent through Twitter that serves as a beginner’s guide to both
the Stop Online Privacy Act and PIPA, the Protect IP Act that stands to
yield similar consequences. One text file, “Why SOPA and PIPA Suck,”
explains in layman’s terms, “How this legislation may very well fuck up the Internet.”“It
is often difficult for us average folk to sympathize with the
billionaire performers in Hollywood and RIAA/MPAA who claim that we're
stealing from them and compromising profits,” writes the author of the document. “They
are correct – it is stealing, plain and simple. However, you don't see
blanket legislation that infringes our basic privacy for any other
crime, like shoplifting.”“To the best of my knowledge,
Congress has never enacted this type of blanket legislation that invades
our privacy – except in the name of combating terrorism, of course.”
Even easier to understand is a video uploaded to YouTube this
week by Leah Kauffman, the mastermind behind the Obama Girl-videos that
led up to the 2008 Election. Over computer-programmed drums and a soft
piano melody, Kauffman sings, “Don't put up a firewall when we could have it all / Say no to protect IP / You won't stop piracy / What is this China?”
The American Civil Liberties Union has added, “By
instituting this practice in the United States, SOPA sends an
unequivocal message to other nations that it is acceptable to censor
speech on the global Internet.” Even the CEO of Google, Eric Schmidt, said in a recent speech that SOPA would essentially “criminalize linking and the fundamental structure of the Internet itself,” calling it “reasonable,” but that its “mechanism is terrible.”
Despite
their attempts at appearing as advocates against SOPA, Google has also
gone on the record to encourage Congress to find other ways to strike
down websites that the government doesn’t want to grow. Before Congress
last month, Google copyright policy counsel Katherine Oyama told a House
Judiciary Committee that while the bill would “jeopardize our nation’s cybersecurity,” she asked lawmakers to consider other ways of censorship.“If
you cut off someone’s financial incentives, they’re not going to want
to pay for the servers, the bandwidth and the infrastructure,” she
said. In order to do that, she suggested the government look towards the
precedent set by stopping funds from going to Julian Assange and his
whistleblowing site, WikiLeaks. “You look at WikiLeaks. I
think this is a good example of the fact that this a strong remedy:
choking these sites off at their revenue source,” said Oyama. “I
think [copyright infringing sites] are in business because they can
sell advertising or because they can process from subscribers. If you
could get the entire industry together and choke off advertising and
choke off payments to those sites, you could be incredibly effective
without introducing the collateral damage we discussed to free speech or
Internet architecture.”
Google and other big web companies
shouldn’t expect the battle to end with a little snafu in the financing
of the sites in question, however. Given the support that anti-SOPA and
PIPA activists have received in this month alone, Big Internet is a
force to be reckoned with. When the National Defense Authorization Act
was approved last week, hacktivists were quick to wage an all-out
campaign on the lawmakers who helped make the law possible. In the days
since, personal information and private details relating to the
politicians that voted in favor of NDAA have made its way around the
Web, with hackers vowing to continue to wage a cyberwar against Congress
and those that let the US government turn America into a battlefield.“We've
been watching you systematically destroy the rights of your own people,
one law at a time. No longer shall we stand by and watch you enslave
our fellow citizens,” an Anonymous operative wrote on the Web recently. “You
have continued down this path of treason by creating acts such as the
National Defense Authorization Act, Stop Online Piracy Act, Protect IP
Act, and more. You've tried to conceal the true purpose of these bills,
and pass them without the consent of the American people.”“We
are now here to undo your sordid life's work in its entirety. No longer
will your transgressions go unnoticed. No longer will you enslave the
people. The world will know of your violations against the rights of the
citizens you were elected to represent,” adds the Anonymous operative.

If you’re a BlackBerry user and you’ve been waiting for a
music service that’s just a bit more compelling than BBM Music, then you
may be in luck — emphasis on the “may.” Spotify for BlackBerry was officially released today, but you’ll only be able to use it under some specific circumstances.
According to Spotify’s blog, the newly released app will only work
for users with the following BlackBerrys: the Bold 9780, Bold 9700,
Curve 9300, Bold 9000, and the Curve 8520.
If none of those handsets sound terribly familiar, I can’t say I blame you — the newest of the bunch (the 9780) was released more than a year ago.
Spotify doesn’t explicitly mention whether or not the app works with
newer BlackBerry 7 devices, but a Spotify rep told the owner of a newer
Bold 9900 that he could “be sneaky and try it anyway.”
Even then, the sneaky approach won’t work for everyone. Spotify’s
blog mentions that CDMA BlackBerrys aren’t compatible at all, and
neither is the Torch 9800. That said, BlackBerry owners with flashier
hardware may still want to give it a whirl — some users on CrackBerry have apparently gotten the app to work on both a Bold 9900 and the ostensibly verboten 9800.

Syrian opposition activist groups have given a
detailed, graphic account of what they say was an organised massacre in
the country.
The Syrian National Council says government forces surrounded
the village of Kfar Owaid and killed all those trapped inside; more
than 100 people.
In all, it is claimed 250 people have been killed in the past few days.
The BBC's Jim Muir reports from neighbouring Beirut.

'Barbz, shld i twerk in the stupid hoe vid???' Minaj asks fans.

By
Jocelyn Vena (@jocelyn1212)

If Nicki Minaj's latest Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded track, "Stupid Hoe,"
seems off-the-wall, her fans should probably expect the video to be as
well. And given the hints that the fierce MC has dropped on Twitter, something zany is definitely in store.

Over the course of the last few days, the singer has been keeping
her Barbz and Kenz up-to-date on the video shoot, which will by all
accounts feature multiple costume changes, multiple setups and even some
fried chicken.
"Next shot is in a bathing suit and [hairstylist] terrence got me
eating fried chkn and carrot cake!" she tweeted, later adding, "gettin
my nailz done. still shootin the vid. 2 more looks!!!!" The rapper later
posted a photo of her manicure, which featured animal prints and
rainbow colors.
"Barbz, shld i twerk in the stupid hoe vid???" she asked. "but i
4got my twerkin moves ... dang." She may not end up twerkin' in the
video, but as of Wednesday, she still had some work to do on the clip,
so it seems anything could make the final cut.
"Stupid Hoe" will be the second video off of Minaj's February 14 release. Earlier this month, she teased the clip for "Roman Reloaded," the album's lead single.
"Well, [Roman] was there [in Moscow] secretly because [alter ego]
Martha wanted him to go there, so they put him in this thing with monks
and nuns; they were trying to rehabilitate him," Minaj explained. "But I
can't tell exactly what happened, you'll just see it in the video
format, but let's just say he got out of there." Minaj added that the
video for "Roman in Moscow" "will be shot real soon."
Those aren't the only Minaj videos that fans are excited for. Her clip for Madonna's lead single, "Gimme All Your Luvin," had everyone buzzing when she tweeted about a kiss she shared
with the Queen of Pop. While little is known about that video, a
behind-the-scenes photo of Nicki donning red sunglasses and hanging out
with M.I.A. on set hit the Web late Tuesday night.

A new study suggests good ol’ fashioned real-world networks played a bigger role in Twitter‘s path to prominence than online influencers.
MIT researchers analyzed Twitter’s user acquisition between 2006 and
2009 in 408 U.S. cities with relatively high numbers of Twitter users.
They found at first the network spread through “young, tech-savy
innovators” with little regard for geography. It took off, for instance,
both in its birthplace San Francisco and across the country in Boston.
But from there, its popularity traveled only short distances — to areas
just outside of these cities — which indicates that more traditional
networks played a big role.
“Even on the Internet where we may think the world is flat, it’s not,” said the study’s co-author Marta González in a statement.
“The big question for people in the industry is ‘How do we find the
right person or hub to adopt our new app so that it will go viral?’ But
we found that the lone tech-savvy person can’t do it; this also requires
word of mouth. The social network needs geographical proximity. … In
the U.S. anyway, space and similarity matter.”
Media attention also played a key role in Twitter’s popularity.
González and her co-authors Jameson Toole and Meeyoung Cha used the
number of news stories appearing weekly in Google News to show its key
influence in their model of Twitter’s path to prominence.
In 2009, for instance, there was a huge spike in user acquisition
after Ashton Kutcher challenged CNN to a Twitter popularity contest. The
week Kutcher went on the Oprah Winfrey show to announce his victory was
the largest increase in Twitter user acquisition throughout the entire
study. Like many bestselling books have gained from the Oprah effect or politicians have gained through the Colbert bump,
it seems that Twitter gained users through the right media attention.
But, Toole points out, it’s hard to get mentioned on Oprah without
gaining some traction first.
“It isn’t surprising that people watch Oprah,” Toole told Mashable.
“What’s surprising is that word of mouth mattered so much until the
media got involved…we don’t usually think about social networks being
embedded in the real world.”

Amazon updated its Kindle app for the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch
Wednesday, giving users access to their periodical subscriptions and
cloud-stored documents for the first time. Previously, users could only
use the Kindle app to read — and, before Apple changed its guidelines, buy — ebooks on those devices.
Having access to documents stored on Amazon is handy, but iPhone,
iPad and iPod Touch owners will find little reason to begin reading
their newspapers and magazines through the Kindle app [iTunes link]. That’s because:
1) They’re likely already paying to get access to their favorite
newspapers and magazines on those devices, or getting them for free as
part of their print subscriptions, and therefore have no incentive to
pay for a second subscription through Amazon.
2) Most major magazines already have designated apps for the iPhone
and iPad, and those apps (in most cases) offer a superior user
experience. They’re optimized for both screen sizes, and come with a
host of bells and whistles — links, slideshows, audio interviews,
interactive graphics — that aren’t available in the Kindle app version.
Take a look at The Atlantic on the Kindle iPhone app, for
instance, which has no navigation and virtually no formatting. Leading
images sometimes bleed into the text of the previous story, and bullet
points, italics and font sizes aren’t rendered at all:

And here’s Popular Mechanics on its iPad app (left two
images) and on the Kindle iPad app (right image). Note how the story has
been divided into two pages on the magazine’s iPad app (left) to make
it easier to read:

The update will be useful to one very small subset of users: Those
who already subscribe to newspapers and magazines through the Kindle
Store, and would like to have their periodicals synced between their
Kindle device and their Apple devices. Those users can now take in a few
pages on their iPhones in line for lunch, and pick up at the same place
on their Kindle Fires at home, for the price of two subscriptions.
Of course, this is not to say that Amazon won’t ever be able to build
a useful newsstand on for iOS devices, or that magazine publishers
won’t wise up and start bundling all of their digital subscriptions
together, including those offered through the Kindle Store. But for now,
there’s nothing for iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch owners to get too
excited about.

You probably guessed this was coming - our Mega-Holiday Giveaway series just wouldn't be complete without a Galaxy Nexus. Today, we're giving away one Verizon Galaxy Nexus, courtesy of our friends at Texas Instruments, along with a pair of Klipsch S4A headphones (read our review here). (For
our international readers: this particular contest is open to the US
only (it's a US-only phone), but you may want to check back tomorrow.)

The TI OMAP4 Processor And Android 4.0

The Galaxy Nexus is powered by a Texas Instruments OMAP4460 dual-core processor,
one of the most powerful mobile processors on the market. TI's OMAP
platform has a number of unique advantages compared to other mobile
processors, and is a big part of what makes Android 4.0 on the Galaxy Nexus such a smooth, enjoyable experience.
TI's OMAP chips utilize a unique memory management system that helps keep more RAM free, so your Galaxy Nexus can multi-task more quickly and efficiently. Ever wonder how the Galaxy Nexus
manages to take such unbelievably quick snapshots from its rear camera?
You can thank TI's dedicated image signal processor, which allows the Galaxy Nexus to focus, shoot, and capture photos more rapidly than any other major smartphone on the market.
Of
course, the OMAP4460 is no slouch when it comes to raw horsepower,
either. With its advanced and powerful hardware, HD video, high-end
games, and the beautiful UI effects of Ice Cream Sandwich all run
buttery smooth on the 4460 you'll find inside the Galaxy Nexus, keeping you on the cutting edge of software and hardware. Finally, with its built-in M-Shield hardware-level security, you can rest assured that your Galaxy Nexus will be trusted by content providers like Netflix for high-quality video streaming.
If you want to learn more about TI's OMAP4 platform and how it works uniquely with Android 4.0, check out this blog post, or, if you want even more technical details about how OMAP4 and Android 4.0 interact, this white paper has a plethora of additional information.

The Prizes

You probably already know all there is to know about the Verizon Galaxy Nexus, but we're going to tell you about it anyway - because we're cool like that.

The Verizon Galaxy Nexus
is the third Google "Nexus" phone - meaning it's running the latest and
greatest version of Android (4.0 - Ice Cream Sandwich), and constitutes
a "pure Google experience." No bloatware, no obstacles to rooting,
ROM'ing, or otherwise tinkering. The Galaxy Nexus features:

This is the best Android phone available right now - hands down.
The lucky winner will also receive a pair of Klipsch S4A headphones, the first Klipsch headphones designed specifically for Android devices.

In
combination with the Klipsch Control app, these headphones are among
the best I've used. The warm, bright sound and resonating bass Klipsch
is known for in its big, floorstanding speakers comes to life on a tiny
scale with the S4A headphones. Check out our review of them, as well.

How To Win

There are three methods, and each method counts as an entry.

Step 1

Add this account to at least one circle on Google+, then re-share this message with your Public circle by clicking Share.

Like the AndroidPolice and Texas Instruments
fan pages on Facebook. No need to leave a comment on either fan page,
simply liking will do the trick. If you're already following both,
simply proceed to Step 2 below.

Step 2

The Terms

The giveaway starts immediately and runs until 11:59PM PST, Saturday, December 24 after which the winner will be chosen randomly and notified via Twitter, Facebook, Google+, or email.
It is open to residents of the United States (because this phone only works in the United States).
One entry per person for each method is allowed; entering multiple
times through the same method will not increase your chances of winning.ANDROID POLICE AND TI VERIZON GALAXY NEXUS GIVEAWAY CONTEST OFFICIAL RULES1. EligibilityANDROIDPOLICE.COM, A CALIFORNIA SOLE PROPRIETORSHIP (referred to herein as “Contest Provider”) IS THE PROVIDER OF THIS CONTEST. The Contest is open only to entrants who reside in the United States (does not include U.S. Territories or Outlying Islands).2. DisclaimerContest
Provider will not be responsible for: (a) any late, lost, or misrouted
transmissions or entries; (b) any Contest disruptions, injuries, losses
or damages caused by events beyond the control of Contest Provider; or
(c) any printing or typographical errors in any materials associated
with the Contest.3. Contest PeriodThe Contest begins December 21th, 2011 at 10:00AM Pacific Time and will continue until December 24th, 2011 at 11:59PM Pacific Time (the "Deadline"). All entries must be received before the Deadline to be eligible to win the Prize.4. PrizesOne (1) eligible entrant will be chosen by the Contest Provider at random as the “Winner,” and will receive the “Prize,” one (1) Samsung"Galaxy Nexus
for Verizon" smartphone device, estimated retail value $649.99, and one
(1) Klipsch "S4A" in -ear headphone device, estimated retail value
$99.99. No substitutions or exchanges, cash or otherwise, will be
allowed. Prize is not transferable.The Prize will be
provided “as is,” Contest Provider and Prize Provider provide no
warranties of any kind, express or implied, including any implied
warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. ALL FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL TAXES ASSOCIATED WITH THE RECEIPT OR USE OF THE PRIZE ARE THE SOLE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE WINNER.Shipment of "Galaxy Nexus"
portion of Prize will be the sole responsibility of Prize Provider.
Shipment of the Klipsch "S4A" headphones will be the sole responsibility
of the Contest Provider. Shipment method and carrier will be selected
by Prize Provider and Contest Provider, respectively. Contest Provider
and Prize Provider assume no responsibility for loss of or damage to the
prize prior to or during shipment. If the Prize, after shipment, is
returned to the Prize Provider as undeliverable or for any other reason,
Contest Provider and Prize Provider reserve the right to disqualify the
Winner and to designate another Entrant as the Winner.5. Collection of Information:The
Contest entry requires you to submit a first and last name, email
address, and shipping address to meet the Contest’s Eligibility
requirements.The Winner consents to allowing Contest
Provider to disclose the following information to Prize Provider for the
purpose of awarding the Prize: (1) first and last name, (2) email
address, (3) shipping address, and (4) contents of one IRS W-9 Taxpayer
Identification Number and Certification form. Shipping address must be
located in one of the countries or regions listed in the Eligibility
section. Failure to provide an address in one of the countries or
regions listed in the Eligibility section will result in
disqualification from the Contest.6. General Release of LiabilityBy
entering the Contest, you release the Contest Provider and Prize
Provider from any liability whatsoever, and waive any and all causes of
action, related to any claims, costs, injuries, losses, or damages of
any kind arising out of or in connection with the Contest or delivery,
misdelivery, acceptance, possession, use of or inability to use the
Prize.7. Affidavit and Release:As
a condition of being awarded the Prize, the Winner will be required to
execute and deliver to Contest Provider a signed Affidavit of
Eligibility, as well as a IRS form W-9, the former of which includes an
acceptance of these Official Rules and a release of liability. The
Affidavit of Eligibility and W-9 may be submitted by email.8. Contest and Prize Providers:Contest
provided by Android Police. Prizing provided by Texas Instruments and
Klipsch. Any questions regarding the Contest should be directed via
e-mail to Artem Russakovskii at giveaways@androidpolice.com.9. Choice of Law:The Contest and these Official Rules will be governed, construed and interpreted under the laws of the United States.10. Miscellaneous:Entrants
agree to be bound by these Official Rules and by the decisions of the
Contest Provider, which are final and binding in all respects. Contest
Provider reserves the right to change these Official Rules at any time,
at its discretion, and to suspend or cancel the Contest or any entrant's
participation in the Contest should any causes beyond Contest
Provider’s control affect the administration, security or proper play of
the Contest or Contest Provider otherwise becomes (as determined by its
discretion) unable to run the Contest as planned.

I have begun to meet up with several of my 555 residents
to document some of their downsizing solutions. It has been so much fun
re-connecting with them, touring their homes and having them share
their downsizing stories with me.
One of my favorite solutions that I have seen is the closet office!
In a smaller living quarters, sometimes the office space is the first to
go but with a little creativity, one can put that workspace back into
the plan! One of my “downsizers” did just that!By
lining the space with shelving and inserting a desk top she has given
her husband a workstation that didn’t originally fit into their home.
The best part – when it gets messy she can just close the door!
Here are some other fabulous closet offices…